*
From everyone else's perspective, a once in a life time prodigy had appeared. An absurd talent that bends the rules of the world and common sense, ascending from C to S grade within a few days of awakening. Ledia herself... Had no frame of reference other than Kaori, an absurd being boasting incomprehensible power since the very start. She attacked Ledia's way of life, there's no time for her to concern herself with what little dregs of 'common sense' are left.
... 11 30 am. It's time. Using flames to propel herself as well as to enhance herself, she began accumulating more and more energy, until the end... She was practically a bomb.
***(Kaori)
"...?! So much energy?! Where and who!?" (Kaori)
Her radar covers the entire continent, for a while now there were some massive fluctuations coming from central, but she had assumed that Himei would take care of it. It's quickly heading to the soft, it took less than a second to accelerate and bubble to the size of an S grade... But what's worry was that... It kept growing stronger... As if there was no limit.
Since it was an S grade or greater threat, there was no hesitation needed. She activated divine form and rushed to the surface. As she accelerated to infinite speed, if felt like the world was slowing to a crawl, the fine particles of sand in the arid breeze floated gently above the ground like little clouds. What was going on? She could still feel the heat even in the midst of this acceleration... The object... It's still moving closer to her despite everything in the world slowing to a stop...
She could feel the heat all the way from here, the object's approach had definitely slowed, but... It's speed is constantly increasing... It hasn't stopped accelerating further... That's why it could contend with her accelerating her own perception of time... It was like an arms race...
Faster... Faster! Until she can't catch up! At the same time... Kaori's body has already been honed to the deepest extremities of combat, liberated of mortal coil, streamlined to perfection... That is what a God magical girl is capable of. To reach infinity would entail already reaching perfection.
She wields her rapier as her perception keeps accelerating. There's gonna be some recoil when she tries to go back to normal time, well, it was nothing she can't handle. After all, she was now entering the edge of the world. The world blends into an insipid grey, her simulated muscles and nerves melt into the computational power of her spiritual body, every cell is a neuron and a muscle, every cell is totipotent and unspecialised yet capable of expressing every function possible.
There are different types of slime. The cell type and the fluid type, both governed by a set of magic circuits that act as half their body. The fluid type has a core that contained the main processor of their circuits, destroying it will annhiliate the slime's functions and kill it, like a brain. The cell type is worse, it has to be eradicated completely, every cell exterminated or else it will keep dividing until its magic runs out.
Kaori was a pure spiritual body, completely unobstructed or impervious to physical matter. Only things infused with a high level of magical particles could even touch her. And if not all of her magic circuits are destroyed, she can regenerate. If they are all destroyed, her planted magic [Idealism of a magical maiden's transient heroism: panta rhei] can rewind time and revive herself.
In other words, this was a losing battle from the start. A nigh invulnerable being that regenerates or revives at an infinite rate, one has to surpass that infinity to pose noticeable threat to her.
"Ah... She stopped... Who is she?
... Ledia, grade... S... I've managed to track her rate of growth and surpassed it... This would have been impossible had I not been a God magical girl..." (Kaori)
11 30 am. Not a second had passed since these individuals engaged in battle. If anything, they kept accelerating, expanding a single moment further and further. Well, they weren't in battle persay. Ledia looked angry, but she hasn't hurt anyone yet.
First, she has to prevent Ledia from running. "Oblivion Magia, Hallowed bridal judgement. Bend time into my fingers, they take an active stance." (Kaori) Rather than just increasing the speed at which she perceives time, now she actively applies it at the world itself. Her Oblivion Magia effortlessly permeates the weaker enemy's body, from here she can use her first skill and instantly erase her mind, bit that's not what she set out to do.
She can also read the future and past iterations of this space, anything that takes place here will be relayed to her. Her face contorts in confusion and shock.
A... A... Another... Timeline...?
Time speeds back up to normal in her Oblivion Magia, Ledia notices the change in environment but couldn't stop herself in time. Kaori snaps her finger and all the energy she built up... Disperses... She read it... The past iterations... The other loops... The... Incessant killing...
It hasn't even been noon yet... Yet...
***(Ledia)
"That face... You already know don't you. You're a God magical girl, so you know everything don't you...? WHYY!!!!!" (Ledia)
Her hoarse cry carries all of her will and anger, burning like a scorching ember that will turn everything into a crisp. For her, there's no excuse. Only retribution... And... This confirms it. Kaori's Oblivion Magia gave herself knowledge of past loops, she's the one sending her back in time... What a joke.... Her rage could barely be contained, restrained by sheer will to inquire for more information... She simply knew... She was still not enough, she needs more information so she could kill Kaori the next time.
Kaori understood... The sole constant was the memories that Ledia carried over to subsequent loops. Kaori's also carried over, but only when she activates her Oblivion Magia and reads her own past and future, or Ledia's past and future, or... When 12 pm hits. It's only 11 30 am, this was an anomaly caused by the absolute nature of her Oblivion Magia... It might interfere with subsequent loops, but... No... Kaori is still aware of her mission, her goal in all of this. She her own awareness shouldn't compromise anything. In fact, it'll present the next challenge to Ledia.
Kill Kaori before she activated her Oblivion Magia. Kill Kaori before 12 pm. Everything looks to be oriented towards this directive... It can no longer be hidden. She was the one sending Ledia back in time... She was the one tasking her to kill herself. But why go out of the way for this convuluted circumstance to have eventuated... It boils Ledia's blood just brooding over the information she deduced.
Now Kaori understood what Ledia was about to do. It hasn't been many loops yet, Ledia was surpassing her expectations... She welcomes it, but she also feels sick to her core having to do this. But... There's no other choice. After 12 pm... After the end of Ledia's time loop... After everything is over...
"... I know your goals. All I can say is... Work harder." (Kaori)
Once more, she drives her rapier into Ledia's heart. Ledia... Doesn't even bother to dodge. She knew she couldn't dodge anyway, she could surpass the speed of infinity... She couldn't match up to Kaori's expectations. Kaori wants to be killed by Ledia and only Ledia, that's why she kills everyone but Ledia when she attacks central...
"Why? Why me...?" (Ledia)
She was S grade, a blade to the heart did almost nothing to her now. Just a momentary pain.
"..." (Kaori)
She wouldn't even offer a single word... Just a slightly pained smile. Was she trying to cheer her up? How disgusting! Even though she's putting her through such cruelty...
How many hours has she lived past 7am...? Despite how she had stopped counting the number of loops, the number of days likely hasn't even exceeded a week. At the start she was too filled with rage and vindictiveness. She didn't give herself time to think at all and got killed so much she didn't bother counting... There's no solid counter or anything that would get carried over the loops anyway...
Only her anger carries over. The first loop, the start of it all... Her neighbours and everyone else in central was murdered without reason. The subsequent loops, she tried to get others to help her, tried to convince them that central was about to be bombed... But everytime...
"... I'm sorry... I couldn't stay alive... For you..." (Marie)
It was still vivid in her mind.
"I don't know if I could buy even a single second... But know that I'll always... Be proud of you." (Father)
Her father shielded her body in futility, the white flames reached everywhere over the capital of the Sanctuary, Central, except her body.
" What...? Why would they attack central of all places? It's under the protection of Himei...
But... I'll heed your call. I'll get everyone to evacuate." (Temue)
***
" It's her isn't it? Everyone! We need to help Ledia! " (Temue)
Stop... You can't do anything... You'll all die and forget all of this ever happened! Stop!!!!!! Please....
It didn't take a second for all of their heads to roll off. The Eye God... Himei... Was nowhere to be seen. To a God like her... Must all of this be under her notice...? After all if another God magical girl like Kaori resided in the Sanctuary... It must be under her permission... Why... Why. Why. Why. Why. Why. Why. Why. WHYY!!!!!
***
"WHY DO YOU THINK ANY OF THIS IS JUSTIFIED?!!!? YOU TOY WITH OUR LIVES EVERY LOOP, CULLING THEM LIKE THROWING DOLLS AWAY JUST TO INCITE ME!!!!!
YOU THINK ANY OF THAT IS OKAY JUST BECAUSE YOU CAN REVIVE EVERYONE BACK!!?!" (Ledia)
"..." (Kaori)
Again with the pained expression... It's so unfair... After countless loops, I found where you generally lived... In the south... You have friends you love... People you care about... You can get angry when I attack it and ascended to A grade for the first time... Why...? Why toy with my life?
"... Sorry. But I'll keep going... Until you kill me, okay?
If you want to save your loved ones... You better get stronger... So strong that nothing can match you. Not the Dragon God, not the Pope Saintess, not the Immortal King, not The Eye God... And lastly not me... " (Kaori)
Everything flickers to black, once more she awakens on the familiar sheets of her own bed. 7 am... Again... The clock on her bedside drawer... She checks it everytime, praying for there to be a different time... For it all to just be a dream... To be honest, her anger can only carry her forward for so many loops... It's not inexhaustible... Once her failures were repeatedly slammed into her in the form of her recurring memories, her willpower was no longer inexorable.
She could keep fighting and fighting... But her willpower was steadily getting chipped, whittled down into nothing. Her first loop, she was attacked. Her next few loops... Her common sense told her it was hopeless, that she couldn't do anything about it herself, so she attempted to get help.... She got everyone to help her fight, but they would get wiped out. She got everyone to evacuate... But they would get wiped out... Kaori's senses extend over at least a few cities... Because she tracked down every magical girl and brought their heads to Ledia... Even those that managed to run to the next continent...
What could she do then...? She could only fight back. For some reason she would always be left alive the last.... The killed to move on to the next loop.... Then... She had to grow stronger... If she was the only variable between each and every loop who could retain her memories... She has to exploit it and take her time to grow stronger... So strong until she could defeat Kaori on her own...
The first time she put this plan into effect, she attack the southern region and became an A grade. That was the first time she met Kaori before 12 pm, and the first time... That she saw Kaori angry. So Kaori also had people she loved and cared about... So Kaori was also living normally until her memories of past loops returned at 12 pm.... At first Kaori couldn't recognise Ledia... Until the bell of noon chimed... It instantly clicked why Kaori always attacked after noon.
This brings her to here... She had never met her before 12 pm before... Until these 2 loops. So she finally understood Kaori's objective... But couldn't understand why she would do this...
It only drives her more frustrated, more vindictive. This shouldn't be the normal state of her life. Now that she knew she could get stronger... She will, and she will kill Kaori as she wished.